Transaction Instrument Inventory Management System and Method

ABSTRACT

A system and method for facilitating inventory management in financial transaction instrument distribution is disclosed. The method may include the steps of: receiving information related to the sale of a first transaction instrument, wherein the first transaction instrument is associated with a second transaction instrument, wherein the first and second transaction instruments comprise a group of transaction instruments, and wherein the information identifies a location of the sale of the first transaction instrument; and associating the location of the sale of the first transaction instrument with the second transaction instrument and/or the group of transaction instruments.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to, and the benefit of, U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/552,842, entitled “SYSTEM, METHODFOR PRE-PAID CARD RETAIL DISTRIBUTION,” filed Mar. 12, 2004; U.S.Provisional Application 60/553,781, entitled “SYSTEM, METHOD FORDISTRIBUTION OF GIFT CARDS,” filed Mar. 17, 2004; and U.S. ProvisionalApplication 60/522,955, entitled “PREPAID CARD IN-PERSON RETAILDISTRIBUTION INVENTORY MANAGEMENT PROCESS,” filed Nov. 24, 2004, whichare incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The invention generally relates to transaction instruments, and moreparticularly, to inventory management systems and methods forfacilitating the distribution of transaction instruments.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

Consumers may use a financial transaction account, which may beassociated with an account number and/or transaction instrument (e.g.,charge card, credit card, debit card, gift card, etc.), as a form ofpayment or for identification in various transactions. However,sufficient inventory management systems and tracking methods do notexist for distribution of many financial transaction instruments.

Distribution of financial transaction instruments may involve thedistribution of physical objects directly to retail locations or througha distribution chain. Distribution of, for example, charge cards maytake place through various third party distribution centers anddistributors in a supply chain. Such systems are not generallyconfigured for detailed tracking of inventory, and systems are generallynot in place or sufficient to facilitate providing timely or usefulinformation to the issuer of the transaction instrument.

These limitations on the ability to track inventory have historicallynot been a strong concern because the product being distributed and/orthe method of distributing the product did not raise significantsecurity, loss prevention, and re-claim issues. For example, distributedcards have typically been closed cards. “Closed cards” are cards thatmay be restricted to use in a particular store or within a particularchain of a stores. One example of a closed card is a pre-paid gift cardthat may only be purchased at, and only be accepted at, a clothingretailer, such as The Gap®. In contrast, “Open cards” are cards that aregenerally accepted at different merchants. Examples of open cardsinclude American Express®, Visa®, and Discover®, MasterCard® cards,which may be used at many different retailers and other businesses.

A relatively low level of concern often exists for loss control andinventory management in the distribution of transaction instruments thatare closed system, valueless, and/or non-expiring cards in comparison toopen system, pre-paid, and/or expiring transaction instruments. As such,the conventional wisdom has been that detailed tracking of thedistribution of prepaid cards, charge cards, credit cards, and the like,may not be cost effective. By way of example, closed cards generally donot have expiration dates; and because of this, there typically has beenno reason to reclaim the unsold cards after a period of time haselapsed.

However, it is presently becoming desirable to distribute open financialtransaction instruments (e.g., open debit/credit cards) in a publiclyaccessible manner. For example, it is desirable to hang an open card ona rack in high foot traffic areas of a store. Such a method ofdistributing may tend to increase the effectiveness of carddistribution. However, open cards may have an expiration date associatedwith the card. Furthermore, the distribution of open cards may increasethe need for of security measures.

Thus, there exists a need for systems and methods that facilitatedetermining the location of a financial transaction instrument (e.g., acard) and reclaiming the financial transaction instrument in advance ofits expiration date. More generally, there exist a need for inventorymanagement systems and methods that can track the distribution of openfinancial transaction instruments.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The invention generally relates to inventory management systems andmethods for facilitating the distribution and tracking of financialtransaction instruments. Some exemplary systems may be described as“reverse inventory management systems” because, in contrast to systemsthat track location from production through distribution, exemplarysystems may be configured to identify the location of some inventoryafter the sale of other related inventory. One exemplary method mayinclude the steps of: receiving information related to the sale of afirst transaction instrument, wherein the first transaction instrumentis associated with a second transaction instrument, wherein the firstand second transaction instruments comprise a group of transactioninstruments, and wherein the information identifies a location of thesale of the first transaction instrument; and the step of associatingthe location of the sale of the first transaction instrument with thesecond transaction instrument and/or the group of transactioninstruments.

The inventory management system may comprise an issuer system, whereinthe issuer system is configured to: produce financial transactioninstruments, group a number of the financial transaction instruments,associate the financial transaction instruments with each other,distribute a group of financial transaction instruments to a distributorsystem, receive information related to the retail distribution of atleast one of the financial transaction instruments from the group offinancial transaction instruments, and record in inventory the locationof the rest of the financial transaction instruments associated withthat group after a first card in that group is distributed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of the invention may be derived byreferring to the detailed description and claims when considered inconnection with the Figures, wherein like reference numbers refer tosimilar elements throughout the Figures, and:

FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram overview of an exemplary transactioninstrument inventory and distribution system;

FIG. 2 illustrates a flow diagram showing an exemplary inventorymanagement method; and

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary distribution channel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

While the exemplary embodiments herein are described in sufficientdetail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, itshould be understood that other embodiments may be realized and thatlogical and mechanical changes may be made without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the following detaileddescription is presented for purposes of illustration only and not oflimitation.

In accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the invention, ainventory management system is configured to ‘locate’ a group offinancial transaction instruments after at least one of the financialtransaction instruments in that group has been sold. Although primarilydescribed herein in terms of financial transaction instruments, and moreparticularly in terms of financial transaction cards (“cards”), thedescription herein is equally applicable to other financial transactioninstruments and to account numbers associated with financial transactionaccounts.

An exemplary system configuration may include, with reference to FIG. 1,a transaction instrument distribution system and inventory managementsystem 100 which comprises an issuer system 110 and a distributor system130. System 100 may also comprise a third-party partner system 120.Issuer system 110 may be any person, entity, software and/or hardwarewhich may issue a transaction instrument to a consumer 140 through adistributor 130 and/or a third-party partner 120. Distribution system130 is any person, entity, software and/or hardware which may distributethe transaction instrument to consumer 140. For example, distributionsystem 130 may be a merchant. Moreover, distribution system 130 may be,for example, a retail mall merchant. Furthermore, third-party partnersystem 120 may serve as an intermediary between distribution system 130and issuer system 110. Consumer 140 may use the transaction instrumentwith various merchants 130, automated teller machines (“ATMs”) 150,and/or the like. Thus, issuer system 110 may be suitably configured tocommunicate with third-party partner system 120, merchant system 130,consumers 140, and/or ATMs 150. In these examples, communicationsbetween any of these components may take place in various manners, forexample, via a network 170, or via other modes of communicationdiscussed herein or known in the art.

The systems and/or components of the systems discussed herein may alsoinclude one or more host servers or other computing systems including aprocessor suitably configured to process digital data, a memory coupledto the processor for storing digital data, an input digitizer coupled tothe processor for inputting digital data, an application program storedin the memory and accessible by the processor for directing processingof digital data by the processor, a display coupled to the processor andmemory for displaying information derived from digital data processed bythe processor and a plurality of databases, the databases includingdistribution data, customer data, merchant data, financial institutiondata and/or like data that could be used in association with theinvention. As those skilled in the art may appreciate, a computer mayalso include an operating system (e.g., Windows NT, 95/98/2000, Linux,Solaris, etc.) as well as various conventional support software anddrivers typically associated with computers.

In one exemplary embodiment of the invention, transaction instrumentdistribution system 100 is suitably configured to facilitatedistribution of transaction instruments through in-person marketingmethods. For example, a transaction instrument, such as an open pre-paidcard, may be offered by a distributor, e.g., a merchant. The merchantmay present the open pre-paid card, for example, by hanging the card ona rack near the check out stand. In this example, the open, pre-paidcard is accessible to the customers who may select one or morepre-denominated cards, and purchase these cards with the rest of theirpurchases. Displaying the pre-paid card in a readily accessible mannermay thus facilitate convenient acquisition of open pre-paid cards byconsumers, and may therefore facilitate distribution of the pre-paidcards. In another embodiment, the merchant may keep the cards behind thecounter or otherwise maintain the cards in a manner not directlyaccessible by customers.

Although frequently described herein as an open pre-paid card which isassociated with a transaction account, a transaction instrument, as usedherein, may be associated with an open account or a closed accountsystem. The transaction instrument may also exist in a non-physicalembodiment. For example, a transaction instrument may be distributed innon-physical embodiments such as an account number, frequent flyeraccount, telephone calling account, and/or the like. Furthermore, aphysical embodiment of a transaction instrument may be distributed as acharge card, credit card, debit card, loyalty card, pre-paid card,diner's card, phone card, transponder, and/or the like.

Furthermore, transaction accounts may be associated with variousapplications that allow the customers to participate in variousprograms, such as, for example, loyalty programs. A loyalty program mayinclude one or more loyalty accounts. Exemplary loyalty programs includefrequent flyer miles, on-line points earned from viewing or purchasingproducts at websites on-line, and programs associated with diner'scards, charge cards, credit cards, debit cards, hotel cards, and/or thelike. Generally, the user is both the owner of the transaction accountand the participant in the loyalty program; however, this association isnot necessary. For example, a participant in a loyalty program may giftloyalty points to a user who pays for a purchase with his owntransaction instrument, but uses the gifted loyalty points instead ofpaying the monetary value.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the transactioninstrument may be distributed via any suitable distribution technique.For example, the transaction instrument may be purchased by thedistributor and resold to a consumer. In another exemplary embodiment,however, the transaction instrument may be consigned to the distributorwho, upon sale to a consumer, pays the issuer. Other distributiontechniques may also be employed. For example, transaction instrumentsmay be distributed for free, e.g., as part of a promotional activity.

In one exemplary embodiment, the transaction instrument comprises anopen pre-paid card that is un-funded and not activated when on displayby a merchant. The card is purchased through the web tool as describedherein. In a first example, the card is funded upon purchase by aconsumer and enabled (i.e., activated), for example, via an IVR system.In a second example, the web site is configured to send a message,directly or indirectly, to the issuer, wherein the message is configuredto fund and activate the card. The open card may be used at a variety ofmerchants. Thus, transaction instrument distribution system 100facilitates convenient distribution of transaction instruments.

Although described as a merchant system herein, in general, distributorsystem 130 may be any service provider, retailer, mall, financialinstitution, travel agency, or other entity that performs in-persondistribution of a transaction instrument. The term ‘retail environment’should be construed broadly to encompass any environment where productis accessible to the public for the public's selection, such as whereproduct is accessibly displayed on counters, shelves, display racks,and/or the like. Furthermore, a retail sale or retail distributionrefers to the distribution to the end user of the financial transactioninstrument as opposed to the distribution or transfer of the financialtransaction instrument down through the distribution chain (e.g., fromthe issuer down to the distributor who provides the financialtransaction instrument to the end user). In addition, a distributor mayhave sub-entities to which financial transaction instruments aredistributed and who may distribute the cards. For example, inventory maybe assigned, in bundles, to various clerks, kiosks, departments, and/orlike entities within a mall or department store.

In accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the invention,distributor system 130 is suitably configured to offer transactioninstruments to consumers in a manner whereby the consumers mayphysically select the transaction instrument. For example, thetransaction instrument may be a card and the card may be associated witha package. In this example, the packaged card may be displayed byhanging the package on a rack display. The packaged card may also bedisplayed by placing the package on a display shelf, in a vendingmachine, or through other suitable display techniques. These exemplarymethods of displaying the package facilitate selection by a consumer ofthe package. The consumer may then begin the process of acquiringownership of the package, for example, by picking up the package andadding it to their shopping cart. In other exemplary embodiments, thetransaction instrument is distributed without packaging.

Although the invention contemplates the sale of transaction instrumentsto consumer 140, in other embodiments, transaction instruments may bedistributed to merchants or consumers for free. In accordance with otheraspects of the invention, distributor system 130 may process purchasesand communicate transaction information with issuer 110 upon sale of anitem. For example, distributor system 130 may sell DVD's, produce, toys,food, hardware, and/or the like, and may communicate (directly orindirectly) with the issuer of a charge card, credit card, a pre-paidcard, and/or the like to reconcile payment for these purchases.

In general, distributor system 130 is similarly configured tocommunicate with issuer system 110 in connection with the distributionof the transaction instrument. The information communicated may varydepending on the distribution technique used, the type of transactioninstrument, the security systems in place, and/or the like. In oneexemplary embodiment, distributor system 130 comprises hardware and/orsoftware, such as a cash register, having a point of sale deviceintegrated therein. Distributor system 130 may have a computing centersuch as a mainframe computer. However, the computing center ofdistributor system 130 may be implemented in other forms, such as apersonal computer, a mini-computer, a PC server, a network set ofcomputers, or the like.

The computer is suitably configured to receive input identifying thetransaction instrument to be distributed. For example, the computer maybe suitably configured to scan a bar code associated with thetransaction instrument and receive information identifying the cardbeing purchased. The computer may further be suitably configured tocompare the identifying information to inventory recorded in a database,to receive or look up the sales price, and/or to calculate the salesprice associated with the transaction instrument.

In one embodiment, for example, a third-party partner account number isscanned from the package holding a pre-paid card and the purchase priceis looked up from inventory. The third-party partner account number, thepurchase price of the card, and the merchant's own identification numbermay be communicated to the third party partner who may convert thethird-party partner account number to the issuer's corresponding accountnumber and forward this information to the issuer.

Furthermore, the merchant computer may be suitably configured to send aFund/Init or Fund/Activate message (as defined herein) to the issuer.The Fund/Init or Fund/Activate message may be a message that requestsapproval of sale of the transaction instrument. The Fund/Init orFund/Activate message may, in one embodiment, be communicated along withthe account number, price, and merchant number information justdescribed, and may also pass through the third-party partner system. Thecomputer may also be suitably configured to receive an‘approved/authorized’ message that authorizes the sale of the pre-paidcard. Furthermore, the Fund/Init or Fund/Activate message may be amessage that causes the transaction account to be funded upondistribution of the related transaction instrument. Moreover, theFund/Init or Fund/Activate message may be sent, substantially in realtime (i.e., at about the time of the distribution/sale of thetransaction instrument). In addition, the Fund/Init message may be amessage that is configured to cause the transaction account to not beactivated at the time of distribution/sale of the transactioninstrument. However, the Fund/Activate message may be a message that isfurther configured to cause the transaction account to be activated upondistribution/sale of the transaction instrument.

Distributor system 130 may also communicate other information withissuer system 110 (directly or indirectly). In one exemplary embodiment,the information communicated includes the consumer name, an accountnumber, a sequential number, the date of distribution of the transactioninstrument, the time of distribution, the place of distribution, thename of the sales clerk, the entity responsible for the distribution,the type of transaction instrument distributed, and/or the like. Thecommunicated information may be useful for reverse tracking of inventoryas described further herein. The communicated information may also beuseful for the issuer and distributor to reconcile amounts owed betweenthemselves, to track inventory, to limit fraud, to activate thetransaction account, and/or to facilitate additional services. Thisother information may be sent at the time of the purchase, or as a batchprocess on a periodic basis. The distribution information may, forexample, be communicated via batch processing that is performed on adaily basis, in real time, and/or at some other appropriate interval.The distribution information may be communicated to issuer 110 directlyin electronic format, e.g., via a web page, or indirectly in a verbal,or printed format that later is entered in electronic format into issuersystem 110.

The distributor system 130 may include a computer that may be suitablyconfigured to access a suitable website or other Internet-basedgraphical user interface that is accessible by users. In anotherexample, the distributor system 130 may include a computer that may besuitably configured to access a suitable website or other Internet-basedgraphical user interface that is provided by issuer system 110. In oneembodiment, the Internet Information Server, Microsoft TransactionServer, and Microsoft SQL Server, are used in conjunction with theMicrosoft operating system, Microsoft NT web server software, aMicrosoft SQL database system, and a Microsoft Commerce Server.Additionally, components such as Access or SQL Server, Oracle, Sybase,Informix MySQL, Intervase, etc., may be used to provide an ADO-compliantdatabase management system. The term “web page” as it is used herein isnot meant to limit the type of documents and applications that might beused to interact with the user. For example, a typical website mightinclude, in addition to standard HTML documents, various forms, Javaapplets, Javascript, active server pages (ASP), common gateway interfacescripts (CGI), extensible markup language (XML), dynamic HTML, cascadingstyle sheets (CSS), helper applications, plug-ins, and/or the like.

Issuer system 110 may include any software, hardware, financialinstitution, credit card company, bank, business, and/or the like thatis capable of issuing a transaction instrument. Issuer system 110 mayalso be suitably configured to receive a Fund/Init message, process arequest for sale of a transaction instrument, and/or return anauthorization/approval message. Furthermore, issuer system 110 mayinclude an internet accessible web site configured to facilitatedistribution of transaction instruments.

In accordance with exemplary embodiments, issuer system 110 may includea production system for producing physical embodiments of transactioninstruments and/or for creating the associated transaction accounts. Inaddition, issuer system 110 may comprise systems that are configured totrack inventory, receive information from distributor system 130,receive information from third-party partner system 120, identify fraud,replace lost transaction instruments, send commission payments, receiveamounts owed, perform accounting, and/or the like for transactioninstruments and/or associated transaction accounts.

By way of example, issuer system 110 may be a financial institution thatissues a pre-paid card to distribution system 130, e.g., a merchant. Forexample, issuer system may consign the transaction instrument to themerchant. In this example, issuer system 110 may further pay acommission to the distributor and/or receive payment from thedistributor.

In another exemplary embodiment, issuer system 110 is configured with,for example, a card authorization system that may be suitably configuredto receive a message from a point of sale device at distributor system130. The card authorization system may be suitably modified to recognizea Fund/Init message from distributor system 130. For example, aFund/Init message may be similar to a standard transaction message withone or more fields changed to indicate that a customer desires toacquire a particular transaction instrument. The field(s) that ischanged may comprise, for example, Message Type Indicator, ProcessingCode, and/or Function Code. Upon recognizing the Fund/Init message, thecard authorization system may be suitably configured to send a messageto a processing system. For example, with reference to a stored valuecard, a message may be passed to a stored value card processing system(e.g., SVCAP).

The stored value processing system may comprise a logic system that cancheck to see if the card status is ‘already sold’, and/or whether thecard status is ‘at the merchant’. In one exemplary embodiment, thestored value processing system may query an appropriate database tocheck the card status. Furthermore, the stored value processing systemmay, upon determining that the card can be sold, (1) adjust the cardstatus in the database to ‘sold’, and/or (2) send an authorizationmessage back, through the card authorization system, to the point ofsale device.

In another exemplary embodiment, the internet accessible website (webtool) may be configured to interact with the card authorization system.The web site may utilize an internet connection or dedication networkconnection specifically routed to the authorization network of theissuer. For example, the website may be given a specific port to accesson an internet enabled Stratus box that is enabled for only thatdistributor application. Furthermore, other methods may suitably be usedto communicate between the website and the card authorization system.Thus, a message may be communicated from the web site to the cardauthorization system requesting authorization to distribute thetransaction instrument. The card authorization system may communicatewith, for example, the SVCAP which may determine if authorization isappropriate, adjust the status of the transaction instrument to ‘sold’,and send an authorization message back, through the card authorizationsystem to the web site. The web site may further be configured todisplay an ‘approved/authorized’ message or a ‘declined/deferred’message. The web site may be further configured to fund a transactioninstrument for a pre-denominated amount and/or for a variable loadamount.

In one exemplary embodiment, and with momentary reference to FIG. 5,issuer system 110 may be further configured with an interactive voiceresponse system (“IVR”) that may be suitably configured to receive arequest from a customer to activate a purchased transaction instrument(e.g., card). The IVR may be suitably configured to check an appropriatedatabase and determine if the status of the card is “sold”. The IVR mayalso be configured to inform the customer, if the card status happens tobe ‘sold’, that the card is activated and/or to activate the card. Forexample, the card may be activated by adjusting the status of the cardin a suitable database.

Issuer system 110 may also include, for example, an established systemfor creating Travelers Cheques, for delivering the Travelers Cheques todistributors, and for tracking inventory, preventing fraud, replacinglost transaction instruments, sending commission payments, receivingamounts owed, performing accounting, and/or the like. These establishedTravelers Cheque infrastructures may, in accordance with one aspect ofthe invention, be leveraged to perform similar functions for thedistribution of transaction instruments. Although described herein asTravelers Cheque infrastructures, it should be understood that issuersystem 110 may include any pre-existing inventory and financialsettlement processing system, which operates using serial number logic,and that a Travelers Cheque system is merely one example of such asystem. Thus, issuer system 110 may, in accordance with one aspect ofthe invention, avoid the creation of new systems that facilitate thisnew method of distributing transaction instruments. Therefore, issuersystem 110 may leverage a Travelers Cheque infrastructure to receiveinformation received from merchant system 130 and leverage a TravelersCheque and/or transaction account infrastructure to process theinformation and/or to provide other services related to the pre-paidcard. For additional information related to leveraging a TravelersCheque infrastructure, see for example, U.S. Non-Provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 10/707,779, filed Jan. 12, 2004, entitled “SYSTEMS,METHODS, AND DEVICES FOR SELLING TRANSACTION ACCOUNTS”, which isincorporated herein by reference.

In various exemplary embodiments, issuer system 110 may distributetransaction instruments to consumers 140 using an intermediarythird-party partner system 120. Third-party partner system 120 may besuitably configured to perform many of the tasks discussed withreference to issuer system 110 and/or distributor system 130.Furthermore, in this exemplary embodiment, merchant 130 may be suitablyconfigured to send the Fund/Init message to third-party partner system120 and to receive an approved/authorized message from partner system120. Similarly, issuer system 110 may be suitably configured to receivea Fund/Init message from partner system 120 and to provide anapproved/authorized message to partner system 120. In accordance with anexemplary embodiment, third-party partner system 120 may also comprise adatabase for converting the identification number associated with thetransaction instrument from a third party partner's number to theissuer's number.

As used herein, the terms “user”, “end user”, “consumer”, “customer” or“participant” may be used interchangeably with each other, and eachshall mean any person, entity, machine, hardware, software, business,issuer system, and/or distributor system. A user may acquire by gift,purchase, or the like, a transaction instrument, for example, an openpre-paid card, and may use that card at different merchants to completea purchase. Also, each user may be equipped with a computing system tofacilitate online commerce transactions. For example, the user may havea computing unit in the form of a personal computer, although othertypes of computing units may be used including laptops, notebooks, handheld computers, set-top boxes, and/or the like. The user computer may bein a home or business environment with access to a network. In anexemplary embodiment, access may be through the Internet through acommercially available web-browser software package.

Furthermore, the terms “business” or “merchant” may be usedinterchangeably with each other and shall mean any person, entity,distributor system, software and/or hardware that is a provider, brokerand/or any other entity in the distribution chain of goods or services.For example, the merchant may be a grocery store, an on-line merchant,and/or the like. With regard to use of the open transaction instrument,the user may communicate with the merchant in person (e.g., at the boxoffice), telephonically, or electronically (e.g., from a user computervia an internet). During the interaction, the merchant may offer goodsand/or services to the user. The merchant may also offer the user theoption of paying for the acquisition using a transaction instrument.Furthermore, the transaction instrument may be used by the merchant as aform of identification of the user. The merchant may have a computingunit implemented in the form of a computer-server, although otherimplementations are possible.

In general, the transaction instrument may be used for transactions muchlike other transaction instruments. Communication between the userand/or merchant and the system of the invention is accomplished throughany suitable communication means, such as, for example, a telephonenetwork, Intranet, Internet, point of interaction device (point of saledevice, personal digital assistant, cellular phone, kiosk, etc.), onlinecommunications, off-line communications, wireless communications, and/orthe like. One skilled in the art may also appreciate that, for securityreasons, any databases, systems, or components of the invention mayconsist of any combination of databases or components at a singlelocation or at multiple locations, wherein each database or systemincludes any of various suitable security features, such as firewalls,access codes, encryption, de-encryption, compression, decompression,and/or the like.

It may be appreciated that many applications of the invention could beformulated. One skilled in the art may appreciate that a network mayinclude any system for exchanging data or transacting business, such asthe Internet, an intranet, an extranet, WAN, LAN, satellitecommunications, and/or the like. It is noted that the network may beimplemented as other types of networks, such as an interactivetelevision (ITV) network. The users may interact with the system via anyinput device such as a keyboard, mouse, kiosk, personal digitalassistant (e.g., Palm Pilot®), handheld computer, cellular phone and/orthe like. Similarly, the invention could be used in conjunction with anytype of personal computer, network computer, workstation, minicomputer,mainframe, or the like running any operating system such as any versionof Windows, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows 98, Windows 95, MacOS,OS/2, BeOS, Linux, UNIX, Solaris or the like. Moreover, although theinvention is frequently described herein as being implemented withTCP/IP communications protocols, it may be readily understood that theinvention could also be implemented using IPX, Appletalk, IP-6, NetBIOS,OSI or any number of existing or future protocols. Moreover, the systemmay contemplate the use, sale or distribution of any goods, services orinformation over any network having similar functionality describedherein.

The computing units may be connected with each other via a datacommunication network. The network may be a public network and assumedto be insecure and open to eavesdroppers. In the illustratedimplementation, the network may be embodied as the internet. In thiscontext, the computers may or may not be connected to the internet atall times. For instance, the customer computer may employ a modem tooccasionally connect to the internet, whereas the bank computing centermight maintain a permanent connection to the internet. Specificinformation related to the protocols, standards, and applicationsoftware utilized in connection with the Internet may not be discussedherein. For further information regarding such details, see, forexample, DILIP NAIK, INTERNET STANDARDS AND PROTOCOLS (1998); JAVA 2COMPLETE, various authors, (Sybex 1999); DEBORAH RAY AND ERIC RAY,MASTERING HTML 4.0 (1997). LOSHIN, TCP/IP CLEARLY EXPLAINED (1997). Allof these texts are hereby incorporated by reference.

The systems may be suitably coupled to the network via data links. Avariety of conventional communications media and protocols may be usedfor data links. For example, a connection to an Internet ServiceProvider (ISP) over the local loop as is typically used in connectionwith standard modem communication, cable modem, Dish networks, ISDN,Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), or various wireless communicationmethods. The merchant system might also reside within a local areanetwork (LAN) that interfaces to the network via a leased line (T1, D3,etc.). Such communication methods are well known in the art and arecovered in a variety of standard texts. See, e.g., GILBERT HELD,UNDERSTANDING DATA COMMUNICATIONS (1996), hereby incorporated byreference.

The distributor, third-party partner, and/or the issuer may beinterconnected via a second network and/or a third network, eachreferred to as a payment network. The payment network which may be partof certain transactions represents existing proprietary networks thatpresently accommodate transactions for charge cards, credit cards, debitcards, and other types of financial/banking cards. The payment networkis a closed network that is assumed to be secure from eavesdroppers.Exemplary transaction networks may include the American Express®,VisaNet® and the Veriphone® networks.

Any databases discussed herein may be any type of database, such asrelational, hierarchical, graphical, object-oriented, and/or otherdatabase configurations. Common database products that may be used toimplement the databases include DB2 by IBM (White Plains, N.Y.), variousdatabase products available from Oracle Corporation (Redwood Shores,Calif.), Microsoft Access or Microsoft SQL Server by MicrosoftCorporation (Redmond, Wash.), or any other suitable database product.Moreover, the databases may be organized in any suitable manner, forexample, as data tables or lookup tables. Each record may be a singlefile, a series of files, a linked series of data fields or any otherdata structure. Association of certain data may be accomplished throughany desired data association technique such as those known or practicedin the art. For example, the association may be accomplished eithermanually or automatically. Automatic association techniques may include,for example, a database search, a database merge, GREP, AGREP, SQL,and/or the like. The association step may be accomplished by a databasemerge function, for example, using a “key field” in pre-selecteddatabases or data sectors.

More particularly, a “key field” partitions the database according tothe high-level class of objects defined by the key field. For example,certain types of data may be designated as a key field in a plurality ofrelated data tables and the data tables may then be linked on the basisof the type of data in the key field. In this regard, the datacorresponding to the key field in each of the linked data tables ispreferably the same or of the same type. However, data tables havingsimilar, though not identical, data in the key fields may also be linkedby using AGREP, for example. In accordance with one aspect of theinvention, any suitable data storage technique may be utilized to storedata without a standard format. Data sets may be stored using anysuitable technique, including, for example, storing individual filesusing an ISO/IEC 7816-4 file structure; implementing a domain whereby adedicated file is selected that exposes one or more elementary filescontaining one or more data sets; using data sets stored in individualfiles using a hierarchical filing system; data sets stored as records ina single file (including compression, SQL accessible, hashed via one ormore keys, numeric, alphabetical by first tuple, etc.); block of binary(BLOB); stored as ungrouped data elements encoded using ISO/IEC 7816-6data elements; stored as ungrouped data elements encoded using ISO/IECAbstract Syntax Notation (ASN.1) as in ISO/IEC 8824 and 8825; and/orother proprietary techniques that may include fractal compressionmethods, image compression methods, etc.

One skilled in the art will also appreciate that, for security reasons,any databases, systems, devices, servers or other components of theinvention may consist of any combination thereof at a single location orat multiple locations, wherein each database or system includes any ofvarious suitable security features, such as firewalls, access codes,encryption, decryption, compression, decompression, and/or the like.

In general, an exemplary method comprises the steps of producing thecards, grouping a number of cards, associating the cards with each otherand/or the group, keeping the card group together during the process ofdistributing the card groups to the merchants, distributing at least oneof the cards in the card group, and recording in inventory the locationof the remaining cards of that group after a card in that group is firstdistributed.

In accordance with another exemplary embodiment, and with reference toFIG. 2, a method 200 of facilitating inventory management in a financialtransaction instrument distribution system may comprise the steps ofproducing financial transaction instruments, physically grouping morethan one financial transaction instrument (step 230), distributing thegroup of financial transaction instruments (step 240), associating thegrouped financial transaction instruments with each other (step 250),receiving information related to the distribution of a financialtransaction instrument (step 260), and determining the location of otherfinancial transaction instruments that are in the same group as thefinancial transaction instrument that was distributed (step 270).Exemplary embodiments of some of these steps are described in moredetail below.

Distribution of financial transaction instruments includes thedistribution of account numbers, which are associated with financialtransaction accounts. For example, an account number may be written on apaper that is distributed and later purchased. Although the inventioncontemplates all forms of distribution of financial transactioninstruments and account numbers, for simplicity, an exemplary embodimentof the invention is described herein in terms of a distribution of apre-paid card or a credit/charge card (a “card”).

The issuer of a card may produce the card and/or packaging associatedwith the card. This may be accomplished, for example, throughthird-party production vendors (e.g., Oberthur Card Systems). The cardsmay be individually packaged, although in other embodiments, one, two,or more cards may be packaged for retail sale together (‘retail salepackage’). However, in various exemplary embodiments, the retail salepackage comprises just the card itself. In one exemplary embodiment, acard may be placed in a cardboard or plastic container that isconfigured to securely hold the card and/or conceal all or portions ofthe card. In other embodiments, a hook may be removeably attached to thecard. Furthermore, many other packaging methods may be used to preparethe cards for distribution.

Similarly, other types of financial transaction instruments may besuitably packaged for retail sale. For example, an account numberassociated with a financial transaction account may, for example, beprinted on a paper or other object that is packaged for retail sale. Asdescribed in greater detail herein, the financial transactioninstruments and/or retail packages may be associated with identifiers(steps 210 and 220). This association may be partially or completelyproduced by the production vendor, the issuer system, and/or bothsystems working together.

The individual retail sales package is configured to be uniquelyidentifiable. Thus, a unique identifier is associated with each retailsales package. The unique identifier may be formed with numbers,letters, symbols, and/or the like. In other exemplary embodiments, theunique identifier is a serial number. For example, the serial numbersmay be sequential numbers within each distribution group of individualretail sales packages. However, it is noted that in some embodiments,the unique identifier may be a random number associated with the retailsales package. Typically, the unique identifier is a separate identifierfrom the account number associated with the financial transactionaccount, financial transaction instrument, or debit/credit card.However, in one embodiment, the unique identifier is the account number.

For simplicity, the unique identifier is described herein as beingassociated with the card. However, the unique identifier may beassociated with at least one of the individual retail sales package,with the card, or other packaged object. Furthermore, the uniqueidentifier (or any other identifier discussed herein) may be in the formof a printed indicia, bar code, electronic identifier (e.g., on a smartcard, coded in a transponder), stored on a magnetic stripe, and/or thelike. In other embodiments, the unique identifier is printed on the cardor package. In accordance with another exemplary embodiment of theinvention, a unique group identifier may be associated with eachdistribution group (as described herein).

In one exemplary embodiment, the cards are each configured to have aserial number. For example, the cards may have serial number printed onthe surface of the card. In another example, the serial number may beincorporated into the magnetic stripe or stored in a machine readablemanner on the card. Furthermore, the serial number may be a sequentialnumber such as, for example, Traveler's Cheque numbers. The uniqueidentifier, account number, unique group identifier, number of cards inthe group, and/or like information may be stored in a database, look uptable, and or the like.

In accordance with one exemplary embodiment of the invention, theindividual retail sale package is grouped together with other individualretail sale packages. (Step 230). The groups (or bundles) may comprisetwo or more packages. Although any number of individual retail salepackages may comprise a group of cards, in one embodiment, 25 individualretail sale packages are packaged together to form a group(“distribution group”). Moreover, the number of retail sale packages ina bundle may vary from bundle to bundle. The number of cards in a bundlemay be varied, for example to suit a specific retailer's requirements.Furthermore, the type of card or package may vary within the bundle orfrom bundle to bundle. For example, one bundle may contain a variety ofpackages each holding one, two, or six cards. In another example, onebundle may contain retail packages each containing one card and anotherbundle may contain retail packages each containing two cards. Similarly,the valuation of prepaid cards and other similar types of informationmay vary from package to package or from bundle to bundle, and/or thelike.

The production vendor may be configured to ship a bundle (distributiongroup) of cards directly to issuer 110, or to third-party distributionvendor 120. System 100 may further be configured to transfer/distributethe bundles through a distribution chain to the retail distributor. Withreference to FIG. 3, an exemplary distribution chain is illustrated ashaving a production vendor 310, a distribution unit 320, asub-distribution unit 322, a sub-sub-distribution unit 324, a retaildistribution center 334, and stores 330. In accordance with variousexemplary embodiments of the invention, issuer 110, third-partydistribution vendor 120, distribution center 334, and/or a combinationof these entities may transfer/distribute the bundles/groups through adistribution chain to retailers, stores, merchants, and/or the like(“retailers”). One exemplary third party distribution vendor is Incomm.The distribution vendor(s) may transfer/distribute the card bundlesintact through out the supply chain/stages of distribution to retailers.

For example, production vendor 310 may ship several bundles todistribution unit 320 which may in turn ship a portion of those bundlesto sub-distribution units 322. Sub-distribution unit 322 maytransfer/distribute a portion of the bundles it receives tosub-sub-distribution unit 324. Any of these distribution entities (e.g.,310, 320, 322, and/or 324) may be configured to transfer/distribute aportion of the bundles they posses to stores or to a retail distributioncenter 334 related to stores 330. Although described herein as a store,the store may be any entity as described with respect to distributionsystem 130 and merchants herein.

Upon receipt of a bundle of cards at a retail selling location, in oneexemplary embodiment, the bundle is opened and the individual retailpackages are displayed via merchandise stands, racks, counters, and/orthe like, for distribution to consumers. In yet another embodiment, thecard bundles received by a retailer may be transferred/assigned, intact,to a particular department, check out stand, sub-entity, kiosk,employee, and/or the like associated with the retailer. In that example,upon reaching the location associated with the retailer, the bundle maybe opened and the individual retail packages may be offered tocustomers. For example, a store may transfer intact bundles toparticular locations 331 within the store, to specific clerks 332 withinthe store, or to managers/assistant managers (e.g., 333 and 334) withinthe store. The managers/assistant managers may further transfer thebundles. Thus, identifying the location of a financial transactioninstrument/retail sale package may include determining the physicallocation of the retail sales package and/or card. Furthermore,identifying the ‘location’ of a financial transaction account/retailsale package may include identifying the name of the store, theidentification of the clerk, the identification of the manager/assistantmanager, the department, the point-of-sale terminal, the building, thecountry, the entity responsible for the retail distribution of thefinancial transaction account, and/or in possession thereof, and/or thelike.

As described herein, a bundle is a group of financial transactioninstruments that remain physically associated with each other throughout the distribution chain. However, in another example, a bundle maycomprise two or more distinct groups of financial transactioninstruments and these groups may be physically separable. In thisexample, a bundle could be distributed to a number of different physicallocations, for example, with some common characteristic. This may beuseful to track the inventory based upon that common characteristic. Forexample, a single bundle comprising several separable groups may bedistributed to a ‘chain’ type retailer that may brake up the groups anddistribute the bundle throughout its network of stores. In thisembodiment, the location of the inventory may still be identified asbeing at a particular type of retailer. For example, when the first ofthe cards from that bundle is sold, the location of all of the cards isknown to be at a Brand X store.

Typically, the individual retail packages are sold to the consumers.However, as described herein, the packages may be given away aspromotional devices, or may be distributed to consumers in other ways.Furthermore, as described herein, an individual retail sale package maybe offered to the consumer in a publicly accessible manner, for example,in high foot traffic areas of the store, and/or within reach of thecustomers. In other examples, the card is held behind the customerservice desk.

In various embodiments, the financial transaction instruments are openfinancial transaction instruments. As described herein, the ability totrack these instruments to the point of sale/point of distribution tocustomers may facilitate enhanced security and fraud prevention.Furthermore, the ability to track these cards may facilitate re-claim ofexpired/expiring cards. Thus, the methods and systems for retroactivelytracking financial transaction instruments may facilitate providingthese instruments to customers in a customer accessible environment, andmay thus enhance the distribution of the financial transactioninstruments.

When an individual retail package is sold/distributed to a customer, orduring the process thereof, the unique identification number associatedwith that individual retail package is communicated to the issuer. Thisinformation may be communicated directly to issuer 110, or by way ofintermediate processing. For example, third-party distribution partner120 may receive the information and pass the information along to theissuer. In one example, a serial number associated with the individualretail package may be communicated to third-party distribution partner120, which may be configured to translate and/or pass that informationalong to issuer 110 (step 260). This information may be communicated,for example, with the reconciliation file, as a batch process, and/orthe like.

Based on this unique identification number, and or other informationthat is commonly provided with such communications/reconciliation files,the inventory management system may be configured to determine thelocation of other the cards associated with that the distributed card'sgroup.

Inventory management system 100 may also be configured to determinewhether a card is sold or unsold, at a particular retailer, at aparticular sub-entity associated with that retailer, and/or the like(“inventory status”). Inventory management system 100 may also beconfigured to identify all of the individual retail packages (or all ofthe remaining un-distributed individual retail packages) that areassociated with the bundle to which one unique identification numberbelonged. Thus, the inventory management system is based on thedistribution of at least one card, out of a group of cards, and theassumption that all other cards associated with the same group as thatone card are at the same location.

In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention,inventory management system 100 may be described as a “reverse inventorymanagement system” because, in contrast to systems that track locationfrom production directly through to distribution, system 100 may beconfigured to identify the location of some inventory after the sale ofother related inventory. In this embodiment, the reverse inventorymanagement system is configured to update the inventory status based ontransaction data/information that is sent with the sale of inventory tocustomers.

Information communicated to an issuer indicating that one card has beensold (and the location of that sale) may be used to identify all othercards that were also in that bundle. For example, each card's uniqueidentification number may be associated with the unique ID of everyother card, for example in a database/look-up table. By searching thedatabase using the unique ID of the card first sold of a bundle ofcards, the system may determine/identify the unique ID numbers of all ofthe cards that are associated with that bundle. It may be assumed thateach of the cards in that bundle, or each of the cards remaining in thatbundle, are at that location. In this manner, the inventory dataassociated with of each card may be updated to reflect the inventorystatus (e.g., location) of that card.

In another exemplary embodiment, a bundle identifier may beelectronically associated with each serial numbered card. Thus, when onecard is sold, the serial number of the sold card can be used in adatabase/look-up table to identify the bundle of which it was a part,and then that bundle identifier can be used to look up all the cardserial numbers that were also associated with that bundle.

In yet another exemplary embodiment, a sequential serial number may beassociated with each card in a group of, for example, 10 cards. In thisexample, the number of cards in the group, and the starting serialnumber for that group, are stored in a database. Therefore, when a cardis sold, the system is configured to determine to which group the soldcard belongs. For example, when the first card in the group is sold, thecard's unique identification number may match an identification numberin a database or look up table. Otherwise, the sold card's uniqueidentification number may be within 10 of the first number of the group.For example, the system may add or subtract any number between 1 and 10from the identification number, then compare the result to anidentification number in the table. When a card of that group is firstsold, the system may update the record of each card to reflect itsinventory status. In one embodiment, the system may update theapplicable group's inventory status.

With sequential numbered cards, it may be convenient to only store theserial number of the first card in the bundle and the number of cards inthe bundle. Thus, in yet another exemplary embodiment, the uniqueidentification number may correspond to a unique group ID number and thesystem is configured to determine the group ID number based on theunique ID number of the first sold card. The group ID number is thenupdated to reflect the inventory status of the group. The location ofindividual cards may be determined by reference to the location of itscorresponding group. Furthermore, other methods may also be used whereinthe distribution of one card in a group of cards makes possible trackingand inventory functions with respect to all of the other cards in itsgroup.

As described herein, Travelers' Cheque systems or other pre-existingserial number based inventory systems, and other transaction instrumentsystems may already be configured to perform inventory functions. Theutility of these systems may be leveraged by providing the abovedetermined location information to these pre-existing inventory systems.

In accordance with various exemplary embodiments, each time a card issold, the inventory status may be updated. Thus, the system may beconfigured to track changes in the inventory status (“dynamic inventorytracking”). For example, the system may be programmed to alert theissuer if part of a group of cards is distributed by one retailer andthen part of the group is distributed by another retailer. The systemmay also be configured to record the location of each card sold forinventory and fraud prevention reasons. Thus, the system is configuredto perform tracking of specific serialized inventory down to the storelevel or lower for purpose of loss control and inventory management(obsolete product recall, changing terms and conditions, expiredproduct, etc.) In addition, system 100 may be configured to modify thelocation of all the remaining cards/retail sale packages. In thismanner, if inventory moves from one location to another, the inventorystatus may be updated.

One of the benefits of the invention is that it may tend to increase anissuer's prepaid card business. The ability to track and performinventory management on cards may tend to improve security and lossprevention methods such that it facilitates distributing the product inopen retail environments with enormous foot traffic and sales potential.The inventory management system may also facilitate detailed tracking ofspecific serialized prepaid cards down to the specific selling locationlevel for purposes of loss control and inventory management. Otherbenefits may include the lowering of operating expenses. For example,inventory management processes may reduce fraud losses and operationalcosts related to inventory management. The inventory management systemmay increase the quantity/quality or performance of the issuer'sexisting services. For example, the inventory management system mayimprove the ability for the issuer to service the needs of its sellingpartners and its end customers for these products. The inventorymanagement system may also facilitate selling of cards through acheck-out lane and controlling/reducing associated losses and costs. Inaddition, the inventory management systems and methods may be configuredto leverage pre-existing travelers Cheque inventory systems and/or otherserial number based pre-existing inventory systems.

Furthermore, the inventory management system may be advantageous toretailers because in some cases, fraud losses on unsold/inactive cardspresented and honored under floor limits at the accepting merchants canbe traced back and charged to fraud at the original stocking location.In addition, third party sellers may be able to reduce the amount ofadditional cost and effort involved to meet issuer requirements fortracking and managing inventory. The inventory management system mayfacilitate inventory management without additional process or systems atthe distribution vendors or at the retail level. Furthermore, it mayfacilitate integration of shipping and receiving financial transactionproducts and similar products in order to reduce handling andmerchandising overhead.

Moreover, the inventory management system may be advantageous tocustomers. For example, customers that have accidentally walked awayfrom the retail selling location without completing the salestransaction for their card can be directed back to the appropriateoriginal stocking location to remedy the oversight.

The invention may be described herein in terms of functional blockcomponents, optional selections and/or various processing steps. Itshould be appreciated that such functional blocks may be realized by anynumber of hardware and/or software components suitably configured toperform the specified functions. For example, the invention may employvarious integrated circuit components, e.g., memory elements, processingelements, logic elements, look-up tables, and/or the like, which maycarry out a variety of functions under the control of one or moremicroprocessors or other control devices. Similarly, the softwareelements of the invention may be implemented with any programming orscripting language such as C, C++, Java, COBOL, assembler, PERL, VisualBasic, SQL Stored Procedures, extensible markup language (XML), with thevarious algorithms being implemented with any combination of datastructures, objects, processes, routines or other programming elements.Further, it should be noted that the invention may employ any number ofconventional techniques for data transmission, messaging, dataprocessing, network control, and/or the like. Still further, theinvention could be used to detect or prevent security issues with aclient-side scripting language, such as JavaScript, VBScript or thelike. For a basic introduction of cryptography and network security, thefollowing may be helpful references: (1) “Applied Cryptography:Protocols, Algorithms, And Source Code In C,” by Bruce Schneier,published by John Wiley & Sons (second edition, 1996); (2) “JavaCryptography” by Jonathan Knudson, published by O'Reilly & Associates(1998); (3) “Cryptography & Network Security: Principles & Practice” byMayiam Stalling, published by Prentice Hall; all of which are herebyincorporated by reference.

It should be appreciated that the particular implementations shown anddescribed herein are illustrative of the invention and its best mode andare not intended to otherwise limit the scope of the invention in anyway. Indeed, for the sake of brevity, conventional data networking,application development and other functional aspects of the systems (andcomponents of the individual operating components of the systems) maynot be described in detail herein. It should be noted that manyalternative or additional functional relationships or physicalconnections might be present in a practical transaction instrumentdistribution system.

As may be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, the inventionmay be embodied as a method, a data processing system, a device for dataprocessing, a financial transaction instrument, and/or a computerprogram product. Accordingly, the invention may take the form of anentirely software embodiment, an entirely hardware embodiment, or anembodiment combining aspects of both software and hardware or otherphysical devices. Furthermore, the invention may take the form of acomputer program product on a computer-readable storage medium havingcomputer-readable program code means embodied in the storage medium. Anysuitable computer-readable storage medium may be utilized, includinghard disks, CD-ROM, optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices,and/or the like.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in acomputer-readable memory that may direct a computer or otherprogrammable data processing apparatus to function in a particularmanner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readablememory produce an article of manufacture including instruction meanswhich implement functions of flowchart block or blocks. The computerprogram instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or otherprogrammable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operationalsteps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus toproduce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions whichexecute on the computer or other programmable apparatus include stepsfor implementing the functions specified in the flowchart block orblocks.

In the foregoing specification, the invention has been described withreference to specific embodiments. However, it may be appreciated thatvarious modifications and changes may be made without departing from thescope of the invention. The specification and figures are to be regardedin an illustrative manner, rather than a restrictive one, and all suchmodifications are intended to be included within the scope of invention.Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be determined by theappended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examplesgiven above. For example, the steps recited in any of the method orprocess claims may be executed in any order and are not limited to theorder presented.

Benefits, other advantages, and solutions to problems have beendescribed above with regard to specific embodiments. However, thebenefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any element(s) that maycause any benefit, advantage, or solution to occur or become morepronounced are not to be construed as critical, required, or essentialfeatures or elements of any or all the claims. As used herein, the terms“comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variation thereof, are intendedto cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method,article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not includeonly those elements but may include other elements not expressly listedor inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Further, noelement described herein is required for the practice of the inventionunless expressly described as “essential” or “critical”.

1-13. (canceled)
 14. An inventory management system that managesfinancial transaction instruments, comprising: an issuer system; andcommunication means for enabling the issuer system to communicate with adistributor system, wherein the issuer system includes a processorprogrammed to: provide an interface accessible by a distributor systemof a distributor that has received a group of financial transactioninstruments, receive, from the distributor system via the interface,information related to a retail distribution of a financial transactioninstrument of the group, and update an inventory management database toidentify a location of a remainder of the financial transactioninstruments of the group after the financial transaction instrument isdistributed, and wherein the information received from the distributorsystem via the interface includes information of at least one of: aphysical financial transaction instrument and a non-physical financialtransaction instrument.
 15. An inventory management system according toclaim 14, wherein the interface is an Internet-accessible graphical userinterface.
 16. An inventory management system according to claim 14,wherein the non-physical financial transaction instrument is an accountnumber.
 17. An inventory management system according to claim 14,further comprising an activation interface configured to enable a userof the financial transaction instrument to request activation of thefinancial transaction instrument.
 18. An inventory management systemaccording to claim 17, wherein the activation interface is an IVR. 19.An inventory management system according to claim 17, wherein theprocessor is programmed to provide the activation interface.
 20. Acomputer-readable storage medium storing code that when executed by acomputer causes the computer to implement an inventory managementmethod, wherein the method comprises: providing an interface accessibleby a distributor system of a distributor that has received a group offinancial transaction instruments, receiving, from the distributorsystem via the interface, information related to a retail distributionof a financial transaction instrument of the group, and updating aninventory management database to identify a location of a remainder ofthe financial transaction instruments of the group after the financialtransaction instrument is distributed, wherein the information receivedfrom the distributor system via the interface includes information of atleast one of: a physical financial transaction instrument and anon-physical financial transaction instrument.
 21. A computer-readablestorage medium according to claim 20, wherein the interface is anInternet-accessible graphical user interface.
 22. A computer-readablestorage medium according to claim 20, wherein the non-physical financialtransaction instrument is an account number.
 23. A computer-readablestorage medium according to claim 20, wherein the method furthercomprises providing an activation interface to enable a user of thefinancial transaction instrument to request activation of the financialtransaction instrument.
 24. A computer-readable storage medium accordingto claim 23, wherein the activation interface is an IVR.